An experimental examination of low-energy cosmic ray heavy nuclei

Low energy cosmic ray heavy nuclei examination by sounding rocke

Assessing the Effects of Institutional Review Boards on Social Science Data Archiving in Digital Repositories

This study addresses the intersection of digital repositories and archives and institutional review boards (IRBs) with regard to opinions on data reuse from the IRB members themselves and researchers in social and behavioral science disciplines whose research requires IRB approval. The issue was examined from several perspectives, utilizing a survey of social and behavioral science researchers, interviews with IRB members, and an analysis of the language used in blank Informed Consent forms from previously approved studies related to potential data reuse. Combined, the data gathered provides multi-faceted insight into these two groups, especially regarding IRB application language and subjects' informed consent. It recommends early intervention by repositories, open discussion within Institutional Review Boards on data archiving in social and behavioral science, increased guidance by IRBs and repositories for applicants, continued education, and increased transparency and communication among IRBs and researchers

Comparison of Three Aspirin Formulations in Human Volunteers

<p>Introduction: The treatment of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) includes the administration of aspirin. Current guidelines recommend chewing aspirin tablets to increase absorption. While this is intuitive, there are scant data supporting this recommendation. The purpose of this study is to assess which of 3 different aspirin formulations is most rapidly absorbed after ingestion.</p> <p>Methods: A prospective, open-label, 3-way crossover volunteer study at a tertiary university medical center with human subjects 18 years or older. Fasted subjects were randomly assigned to receive aspirin 1,950 mg as (1) solid aspirin tablets swallowed whole, (2) solid aspirin tablet chewed then swallowed, or (3) a chewable aspirin formulation chewed and swallowed. Serum salicylate measurements were obtained over a period of 180 minutes. Pharmacokinetic parameters were determined.</p> <p>Results: Thirteen males and 1 female completed all 3 arms of study. Peak serum salicylate concentrations were seen at 180 minutes in all groups. Mean peaks were 10.4, 11.3, and 12.2 mg/dL in groups 1, 2, and 3, respectively. Mean area under the time concentration was 1,153, 1,401, and 1,743 mg-min/dL in groups 1, 2, and 3, respectively. No measurable salicylate concentrations were seen in 6 subjects in group 1 at 60 minutes as compared to 1 subject in group 2. All subjects in group 3 had measurable levels at 45 minutes. There were no adverse effects in any of the subjects during the study period.</p> <p>Conclusion: Our data demonstrate that the chewable aspirin formulation achieved the most rapid rate of absorption. In addition, the chewable formulation absorption was more complete than the other formulations at 180 minutes. These data suggest that in the treatment of ACS, a chewable aspirin formulation may be preferable to solid tablet aspirin, either chewed or swallowed. [West J Emerg Med. 2011;12(4):381–385.]</p

Cognitive mediation in people with dementia:Development, structural, and construct validity of the first dementia‐specific measure

OBJECTIVES: Anxiety and depression are common and deleterious comorbidities in people living with dementia (PLWD). Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is one of the few promising treatments; however, it is unclear whether PLWD have the necessary prerequisites to engage in this. Having an understanding of cognitive mediation, that a thought mediates the relationship between an antecedent event and its emotional consequence, is key for engaging with CBT and is also a critical component of emotion regulation. There are no measures of this construct validated for PLWD. This study aims to adapt and validate an existing measure for this population. A secondary aim is to assess its applicability in older adults (OA) without a recognised neurocognitive impairment. // METHODS: A measure of cognitive mediation was adapted via expert and service user consultation for use in PLWD. A total of 102 PLWD and 77 OA without neurocognitive impairments completed the adapted measure along with two measures of emotion recognition and reasoning. Factor structure was examined separately in both samples, and the measure reduced, with convergent validity assessed. // RESULTS: A final measure of 10 items (named the CM-Dem) was subject to factor analysis yielding a single factor solution. The measure showed good psychometric properties in PLWD, including good model fit, high internal consistency, inter-rater reliability, and moderate convergent validity with related constructs. In contrast, poor validity was found in OA, especially a lack of convergent validity. // CONCLUSIONS: The CM-Dem has clinical and research utility as a measure of cognitive mediation in PLWD, but less so in OA

Characterization of Xylan Utilization and Discovery of a New Endoxylanase in Thermoanaerobacterium Saccharolyticum through Targeted Gene Deletions

The economical production of fuels and commodity chemicals from lignocellulose requires the utilization of both the cellulose and hemicellulose fractions. Xylanase enzymes allow greater utilization of hemicellulose while also increasing cellulose hydrolysis. Recent metabolic engineering efforts have resulted in a strain of Thermoanaerobacterium saccharolyticum that can convert C5 and C6 sugars, as well as insoluble xylan, into ethanol at high yield. To better understand the process of xylan solubilization in this organism, a series of targeted deletions were constructed in the homoethanologenic T. saccharolyticum strain M0355 to characterize xylan hydrolysis and xylose utilization in this organism. While the deletion of -xylosidase xylD slowed the growth of T. saccharolyticum on birchwood xylan and led to an accumulation of short-chain xylo-oligomers, no other single deletion, including the deletion of the previously characterized endoxylanase XynA, had a phenotype distinct from that of the wild type.This result indicates a multiplicity of xylanase enzymes which facilitate xylan degradation in T. saccharolyticum. Growth on xylan was prevented only when a previously uncharacterized endoxylanase encoded by xynC was also deleted in conjunction with xynA. Sequence analysis of xynC indicates that this enzyme, a low-molecular-weight endoxylanase with homology to glycoside hydrolase family 11 enzymes, is secreted yet untethered to the cell wall. Together, these observations expand our understanding of the enzymatic basis of xylan hydrolysis by T. saccharolyticum

The structure of TTHA0988 from Thermus thermophilus, a KipI-KipA homologue incorrectly annotated as allophanate hydrolase

The Thermus thermophilus protein TTHA0988 is a protein of unknown function which represents a fusion of two proteins found almost ubiquitously across the bacterial kingdom. These two proteins perform a role regulating sporulation in Bacillus subtilis, where they are known as KipI and KipA. kipI and kipA genes are usually found immediately adjacent to each other and are often fused to produce a single polypeptide, as is the case with TTHA0988. Here, three crystal forms are reported of TTHA0988, the first structure to be solved from the family of `KipI-KipA fusion' proteins. Comparison of the three forms reveals structural flexibility which can be described as a hinge motion between the `KipI' and `KipA' components. TTHA0988 is annotated in various databases as a putative allophanate hydrolase. However, no such activity could be identified and genetic analysis across species with known allophanate hydrolases indicates that a misannotation has occurred. © 2011, Wiley-Blackwell. The definitive version is available at www3.interscience.wiley.co

Adaptive Restoration of Airborne Daedalus AADS1268 ATM Thermal Data

To incorporate the georegistration and restoration processes into airborne data processing in support of U.S. Department of Energy's nuclear emergency response task, we developed an adaptive restoration filter for airborne Daedalus AADS1268 ATM thermal data based on the Wiener filtering theory. Preliminary assessment shows that this filter enhances the detectability of small weak thermal anomalies in AADS1268 thermal images

Functional Heterologous Expression of an Engineered Full Length Cipa from Clostridium Thermocellum in Thermoanaerobacterium Saccharolyticum

Background: Cellulose is highly recalcitrant and thus requires a specialized suite of enzymes to solubilize it into fermentable sugars. In C. thermocellum, these extracellular enzymes are present as a highly active multi-component system known as the cellulosome. This study explores the expression of a critical C. thermocellum cellulosomal component in T. saccharolyticum as a step toward creating a thermophilic bacterium capable of consolidated bioprocessing by employing heterologously expressed cellulosomes. Results:We developed an inducible promoter system based on the native T. saccharolyticum xynA promoter, which was shown to be induced by xylan and xylose. The promoter was used to express the cellulosomal component cipA*, an engineered form of the wild-type cipAfrom C. thermocellum. Expression and localization to the supernatant were both verified for CipA*. When a ΔcipA mutant C. thermocellum strain was cultured with a CipA*-expressing T. saccharolyticum strain, hydrolysis and fermentation of 10 grams per liter SigmaCell 101, a highly crystalline cellulose, were observed. This trans-species complementation of a cipA deletion demonstrated the ability for CipA* to assemble a functional cellulosome. Conclusion: This study is the first example of an engineered thermophile heterologously expressing a structural component of a cellulosome. To achieve this goal we developed and tested an inducible promoter for controlled expression in T. saccharolyticum as well as a synthetic cipA . In addition, we demonstrate a high degree of hydrolysis (up to 93%) on microcrystalline cellulose

Structure of the sporulation histidine kinase inhibitor Sda from Bacillus subtilis and insights into its solution state

The crystal structure of the DNA-damage checkpoint inhibitor of sporulation, Sda, from Bacillus subtilis, has been solved by the MAD technique using selenomethionine-substituted protein. The structure closely resembles that previously solved by NMR, as well as the structure of a homologue from Geobacillus stearothermophilus solved in complex with the histidine kinase KinB. The structure contains three molecules in the asymmetric unit. The unusual trimeric arrangement, which lacks simple internal symmetry, appears to be preserved in solution based on an essentially ideal fit to previously acquired scattering data for Sda in solution. This interpretation contradicts previous findings that Sda was monomeric or dimeric in solution. This study demonstrates the difficulties that can be associated with the characterization of small proteins and the value of combining multiple biophysical techniques. It also emphasizes the importance of understanding the physical principles behind these techniques and therefore their limitations